Waiting Game
by asdawnbreaks
Summary: With Katniss being taken off to her first Games, Gale Hawthorne begins playing a waiting game until she gets home. He balances what is expected of him with watching his best friend fight for her life.
1. Chapter 1

Gale Hawthorne used to think the hardest thing a person could go through was dying. The thought of leaving everyone he loved behind with nothing was unfathomable. Watching his little brothers and sister starve to death before his eyes was something that had haunted his dreams even before his father's death.

But as he sat on the rock, he felt the absence of her presence, and as he ate his lunch, he realized that this might be the hardest thing a person could go through, being alone and missing someone. In some of his father's old books, he had seen the words "it is better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all." He wasn't sure who wrote them down, but he could've probably punched the guy who did.

He finished the little squirrel he had packed and picked up his bow to walk through the woods. She hadn't even been gone three days, and he was so worried about her that he had to force himself to eat, force himself to get out of bed and hunt in the mornings. It sickened him that the thought of truly losing her was enough to make him forget everything else he had deemed important.

Losing Katniss to the cruel Capitol was something that had haunted his dreams since he realized how much he cared about her, but it was nothing compared to the dreams he had been having since the day of the Reaping. Usually about two weeks before Reaping time, Gale started to have nightmares about losing every person he loved. The silliest of them all was the nightmare that his family would starve if he was reaped. He had made a pact with Katniss a long time ago that the reaped one would feed the other's family, and that pact was the only thing that had kept him from volunteering.

As he passed familiar trees and rocks, he recalled that he was walking the same path they had been when they made the pact. It was on their very first reaping day together. Gale had twice as many slips as she did, and was working hard to act like he was half as concerned.

"What are you so nervous for, Catnip?"

She hated the nickname, and she rolled her eyes at him, "What if I'm picked, Gale? Prim can't do anything by herself yet. And my mother's no help."

He smirked at her, "You ought to know better than that. Did you honestly think I'd let them starve?"

"People in this district have done worse things with less baiting," she snapped.

He remembered it had confused him—he thought it was assumed that they'd care for each other's families. But he got in front of her and held her close to him—one of the first times he had ever done so. He had felt her arms go around his back, holding him to her. he pulled back and looked deep into her eyes, "Katniss, I promise, I will _not_ let them starve. But you have to promise to never let my family starve."

She had smiled and shook his hand, "It's a deal then."

The weather had turned ugly today, and none of the animals were out. Their instincts were sharper than his, and as the wind picked up, he realized he had better go home. They still had plenty of eat, but today was more for himself than for the Hawthorne or Everdeen families. Walking around the house with his mother (who was still sobbing over Katniss, three days later), and having his brothers stare at him was almost more than he could handle. Sure, Katniss was family to them all, but he didn't want to be reminded that it was _him_ she was special to.

So before anyone woke up, he'd grabbed his bow and headed for the woods.

He hid his bow and arrows in the old hollow log he and Katniss used. He took her bow out and gripped it tightly, praying that she would be supplied one or that she could make one.

If she followed his advice, they'd be sure to give her one. All the Hunger Games were was a cleverly put together television show, run by sponsors. No sponsors, no viewers, no Games. If they saw how deadly Katniss could be with a bow, they'd include one simply because it would be entertaining.

For all the while that he pined away for Katniss, he just grew angrier and angrier. Before he realized, he was stomping back to the fence instead of walking. Who was the Capitol that they could take away what he loved, that they could just order people around because they had the guns? That wasn't right. Why were they being punished for something done nearly 75 years ago? Gale had been reading his father's books lately, and most of them called for something called _liberty_. And as best as he could read, it meant to be free.

Since he read the book, the idea had grown like a poisonous weed in his mind, except that the idea was positive. He'd mentioned running away to Katniss, because he knew good and well that he couldn't go without her. But she'd refused him, and now she was practicing arena skills so she could fight to her death. The thought was enough to make him duck behind the Mellark bakery so he could throw up.

He felt bad for the Mellarks, he really did, but not bad enough to want Peeta to be the one who came home. Greasy Sae was already taking up money to send to Katniss, and he had already put in every last coin he could spare, and even some he shouldn't have. Rory had emptied his life's savings into it, as had Vick and Posy. The entire district was behind her, and as much as the thought made him swell with pride, it also made him depressed that they had preferred one tribute so much over the other.

As he walked home, he crunched leaves, remembering when he and Katniss used to do the same on the walks home every fall. She could appreciate the beauty in the world around her, and Gale could only appreciate the beauty within her.

Instead of turning left at the oak tree to go home, he turned right, intending to check in and make sure Prim was being taken care of. He wiped his boots on the mat and straightened his hunting jacket before knocking. He knew he didn't have to knock—he was basically family now anyway—but he felt as if it was impolite not to. Prim came scampering to the door, smiling when she saw Gale's familiar figure, "You came!" she squealed.

She opened the door and invited him in, exclaiming that he didn't need to knock anymore, but he just smirked and hugged her—she felt thin.

Silently, he looked around the kitchen, walking to each cabinet and opening them, finding nothing but crumbs and feeling his anger climbing. He didn't mean to, but he had acid in his voice when he asked, "Prim, what have you been eating?"

The little girl looked down at her feet, "I was going to come to your house tonight, because everything Katniss caught has run out."

It was a dangerous statement, and Prim knew that. Her mother zoning out angered Gale almost as much as it did Katniss, but he was far too polite to say anything. This time was different. Katniss was gone, and Gale couldn't be there full time to look out for Prim. Gale's eyes flashed fire, and he could feel his blood pressure rising. He walked back to the room where Katherine normally sat in her rocking chair, holding a book and pretending to read.

He burst through the door, and the noise snapped Katherine's head up to full attention. Gale had a look in his eyes that she had never seen before, and one she hoped she'd never see again. He looked as if he could murder her on the spot, but he spoke with cool and calm conviction, "Did you just make Katniss empty promises?"

Katherine shook her head.

"Are you planning on feeding that twelve year old or just letting her starve emotionally too?"

Katherine looked confused, so Gale went on, "The only mother figure in her life was just whisked away and there wasn't anything she could do about it. You promised Katniss you'd take care of her, and so far you've done a _damn poor_ job! If you don't want to be a mother, let me know and Prim can live with us till Katniss comes home, but don't you _dare_ give up! Katniss _will_ come home, and you can bet that she isn't going to like it if you promised you'd be there for Prim and you aren't!"

With that, he turned to the door, "Get your act together. If I have to come back, I'm taking Prim with me. For good." He walked to the living room and told Prim to get her coat so she could eat with the Hawthornes.

On the walk home, Prim didn't say much—in fact, she didn't say anything. She knew how angry Gale must have been to say what he did to her mother, but she also knew that her mother wasn't taking care of her like she had promised Katniss. It had been three days, and the food Katniss had left her should have lasted almost four and a half days.

Gale was still fighting himself. He knew he should have said more than he did, but he also knew that it wasn't polite, and he liked to make up for his lack of money with manners. He honestly didn't know if Katniss would smack him or hug him for what he just did, and he longed for her to be there to talk to. It was the longest they'd been apart in four years, and he really hated that he couldn't consult her with his problems.

As he entered the house, Hazelle raised her eyebrows at the sight of Prim, but said nothing. Rory, however, was currently infatuated with Prim and was overexcited at her arrival. Posy was just happy at the excitement and waved her toys around. As they sat down to supper, there was a knock at the door. Being the man of the house, Gale stood up to answer it. Outside stood Katherine Everdeen, crying in the now pouring rain with Katniss's hunting jacket in her arms.

"Gale, you were right."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter two  
**It was obvious to him that she missed Gale. He wasn't even sure that she knew it, but Peeta did. Even on the platform in front of the district three days ago, she hadn't wanted to say anything but her eyes told the story. Peeta had always been good at reading people, and as he had seen her eyes scan the crowd and resting on the handsome Hawthorne, he knew she was more attached to him than he was to her.

Of course it pained him—he knew it was hard to watch someone you love be in love with another man—but he knew he wasn't coming home, and he was okay with that. He'd gladly sacrifice himself for her, it wasn't really even a question. But he knew he could do it because he knew she would be well cared for when she went home—because _she_ was going home.

In fact, Gale Hawthorne had come to see him after the reaping, just to talk to him about Katniss. After his family left, the door opened to Gale, with tears streaming down his face. When the guard left, Gale grabbed the collar of Peeta's shirt and lifted him in the air with ease. Gale's dark grey eyes darkened and he spewed venom in Peeta's face, "Take care of her, I mean it, Mellark."

"I was p-p-planning to," Peeta spit out.

Gale had sat him down and crossed the room to the big chair, collapsing and burying his face in his hands, "She has to come home. There isn't another way."

Peeta put his hand on Gale's shoulder, not really knowing what else to do. "I would die for her, Gale," he said.

Gale lifted his head as the guard opened the door, "Good. Because you're probably going to have to."

And as Gale had shot him one last look, Peeta could see that Gale was slowly crumbling before him. His entire world was turned around with one card, and Peeta could see its effect.

As Peeta reflected on Gale's visit, he remembered thinking that he would probably ask Gale to kill him if he didn't bring Katniss home. But that day it had been made clear that he wasn't the only person in the Justice Building who was in love with Katniss, but he had been the only one who was aware of it.

But observing her the last few days as he had, he realized that she needed Gale in a way he'd never seen two people need each other. That crumbling Peeta saw in Gale's eyes would be nothing in comparison to what would happen if Katniss actually perished. It would be similar to what would happen to him too, but Gale Hawthorne was so strong—physically and mentally—that it was hard to accept that a woman like Katniss held such power over him.

Haymitch came into his room, not knocking, but Peeta could expect no less. "How are we doing this, boy?" he questioned.

"Doing what?" Peeta snapped back. He'd been frustrated with his mentor since meeting him. Even a sober Haymitch put him in a bad mood.

Haymitch chuckled, annoying Peeta further, "Saving the girl."

…

It was getting harder and harder for Gale to ignore people at school. The only things people would say to him were concerning Katniss, Peeta, and the games. But no one seemed to pick up on the fact that he didn't want to talk about any of the three.

He didn't want to discuss the games because he hated the Capitol, he hated Panem, and he hated their stupid games.

He didn't want to discuss Peeta because the damn fool had professed his love for Katniss, and was pretending to be a Career. The only thing Gale hated more than the Capitol was a career lapdog.

He for damn sure didn't want to discuss Katniss, because he missed her terribly, and he couldn't handle the pathetic glances and sorrowful looks he got from the people at school.

Some understood and had saw through his façade and had attempted to present themselves as friends. Some just ignored him and his ever-obvious feelings for Katniss. And some still (all of whom were girls) tried to pry themselves upon him in his weak moments with physical comforts.

It was all annoying to him, and he could feel himself getting bored and getting ruder and ruder with people he considered his peers. The night of the carriage rides all anyone could talk about was how beautiful Katniss looked and how good Peeta looked beside her.

The day after she had been presented as "The Girl on Fire" and Peeta had confessed his love the school could talk about nothing else—especially the boys. Dazemond Areway lost two teeth because he couldn't keep his mouth shut about how well the suit showed Katniss's figure. Another boy Gale didn't even know was knocked unconscious behind the school because he made the comment of Katniss finally letting someone "touch that sweet ass little Seam body of hers," and being disappointed it was Peeta and not him.

Gale didn't mean to turn and start throwing punches, but the boy had insulted Katniss, and he saw red. In one hit, the boy was unconscious, and Gale instructed his friends to take the boy home and keep their mouths shut about Katniss.

After that, no one said anything about Peeta around Gale anymore.

After the training scores were announced, the entire district went crazy, cheering and donating money they didn't have. The place was a little more festive, as people began to have hope in their Girl on Fire and their star-crossed lovers of district 12.

But Gale was worried, now his nightmares were fire-themed and he couldn't get the image of Peeta and Katniss out of his head. Most days, he didn't know what he was supposed to think or do about it, so he just went to the woods.

It never felt right without Katniss there, and he would begin to miss her again. Sometimes he would hike early in the morning to the lake, and the sunshine would fill his heart with her presence, but it would all be lost before he got back to town. Sometimes he would just walk the snare line and remember things that had happened to them as children. But most days he would just sit on their rock and let the sounds of the forest fill him, and wonder what Katniss was doing right now.

He caught more meat than he really knew what to do with, so he'd give some to his family, give some to Katherine, and then he'd simply give the rest away to the Seam families. He didn't need it, and he knew Katniss would smile if she knew he was doing something actually worth while.

The Everdeen and Hawthorne families had taken to watching the games together during the remainder of the Games. No one mentioned Peeta being in love with Katniss around Gale, but it was all the announcers could talk about. It didn't make things any easier for either side, except to have more hands to hold every time something happened, but it helped a little.

What Gale wanted most when Katniss was in danger was to be alone.

When they thought she'd die of thirst, he didn't drink until he saw that she'd found water. When she was running from the flames, he thought his heart would self-combust from the stress of watching her run for her life. His mother nearly hit him on the head, for when Cato and the other careers treed her, he had cursed loud enough that the neighbors from three houses over rushed to see if anything was wrong.

But when she got the burn cream, he thought he could've died then from happiness. She had a chance—even the sponsors saw that.

But Peeta… the name drew venom in his mouth. Yeah, he had only been doing it to protect Katniss, but he still deceived her, and Gale didn't trust him after that. But Rue… she had saved Katniss's life, and that was something that he felt as if he personally would owe her for the rest of his life.

After it showed that she had survived the hallucinations, Gale decided he needed to take a walk. Having her alive was such a relief off his shoulders, and while his family was celebrating, he just wanted to be alone. He wanted to go to the woods and be happy by himself.

But then as he was standing up, Katniss whispered a name. She was sleeping, but she had whispered a name, and Gale wasn't the only one who heard it. The announcers were chattering, but they noticed it too and had stopped to replay it.

"_Gale._"

She had called his name. She had wanted _him_. But the Capitol announcers didn't realize that Gale was the name of her best friend. No, with disbelief, they realized that she had simply said some gibberish in her delusions.

But Gale knew better, so did his family.

And so did the rest of the district.

Within an hour, there was a knock at the door. At first, Gale thought that maybe one of his friends had come to congratulate him, or someone had come to apologize for what they'd said about her and Peeta.

When he opened the door, he found a hastily thrown together Madge Undersee. Her hair was mussed—something Gale _never_ saw, and her read cheeks and heavy breathing suggested she had ran to Gale's home all the way from the Mayor's house.

"Madge," he exclaimed. "What on earth are you doing here?"

She spoke low and fast, "You have to come with me, Gale. There's an important phone call you have to take. _Now_."

Gale put on his boots and his hunting jacket, told his mother he'd be back, and ran to the mayor's house.

…

Haymitch was growing impatient. It had been a long time since he'd seen either the Seam or the Mayor's House, so he really didn't know how long it was going to take the damn boy to run.

This was bad, very bad. He was doing his best to sell the star crossed lovers act, and now she had whispered the other boy's name in her sleep. It couldn't be helped, she hadn't chosen this lie, it was thrust upon her.

But what the hell was he going to do about this mess? How could he sell it? The entirety of district 12 knew that Gale and Katniss were inseparable, he was never in town, and even he could tell. The boy was in love with her, that much even Haymitch could tell.

But while he was waiting for Gale to come to the phone, he hatched an idea. District 12 hated the Capitol with a fierce passion, fierce enough that they would do anything to protect Katniss—even if it meant going along with a lie.

There were only 9 tributes left, maybe he could keep her alive for the final eight interview, but then he could pass the boy off as her close friend—no—her cousin. Family, if they were family, it would explain the close bond.

Yes, that is what they would do, Haymitch decided. He had made up his mind by the time Gale reached the phone, breathless.

"Hello?"

"Hawthorne? This is Haymitch Abernathy. I know you saw what was on that TV tonight, and I need to you listen very carefully to what we're going to do to fix it, okay?"


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: okay so i'm trying hard to keep this updated, but i just wanted to clarify. This is going to stay as close as i can to the original Hunger Games timeline. I don't really know how far i'm going into it, maybe up to CF, guess we'll see :) please review!**

* * *

**Chapter Three  
**All of the prepping crews made Gale uncomfortable. Only he, Prim, and Katherine were being interviewed, and he was bitter that they were the only ones who had to undergo the torture. All the picking and primping set him in a bad mood, and he was already in one because he was supposed to lie.

He didn't like that he couldn't claim Katniss the way he wanted, but he knew it would happen sooner or later. But Haymitch had assured him that it was for the best, that it would protect her. After the games were over, everything could go back to how it was and he could have her for himself. But for now, he'd been told, it was to protect her. And as long as he could protect her, he would.

All the Capitol people were weird to Gale anyway. Nice, but weird. They talked about Katniss as if she were the best thing to ever happen to them, and judging by the parties that they'd gotten invited to because of it, Gale supposed she was. But then the head guy came in, and the other three became silent. "I'd like to speak to Katniss's cousin alone, please," he said. The other three swiftly left the room, and Gale was glad.

"Do you know what you're supposed to do?" Cinna asked.

"Yes," Gale replied. He had met the man earlier in the day and decided he really liked him. The guy was willing to risk his life so Katniss could make an impression, and that was okay with Gale.

"Just sell it. Be confident. They won't question you if you're confident." Cinna kept going, "And the important thing is to not get angry when they mention Peeta, because they're going to."

It made Gale's blood boil to think of Peeta, but he knew that he didn't have a choice. He had to act like he was so happy for Peeta and Katniss, and hope that Peeta would make it home.

He didn't like any of the Capitol people, and he was glad they were at the Everdeen house instead of the Hawthorne's. Too many of them had gotten smart with Katniss's mother, and he knew he wouldn't be so polite if it had been his own.

And if their bad manners weren't enough, the ones who weren't associated with Katniss's prep team had ghastly horrifying tattoos that had made Posy cry. Gale just laughed at all the money these people wasted on things that were dumb to him.

But when Effie Trinket led him to the chair with the Everdeens, she changed Gale's opinion. While he had been planning in his head all the things he could have bought with the money saved on the woman's outfit, Effie began talking about Katniss.

"…And you must be her sister, Primrose! What a beautiful name, dear. You know, Katniss only had the best things to say about you and how strong you were for doing this." Gale zoned out while she introduced herself to Katniss's mother, but when Miss Trinket extended her hand to Gale, she smiled the first genuine smile Gale had seen on her face.

"Mr. Hawthorne, yes?" Gale nodded at the vibrant woman. "Why, you are just as handsome as Katniss said you were! She told me all about her best friend who she shared everything with! You two must be very fond of each other!"

Gale blushed, but he had to laugh whenever Cinna took Effie by the shoulder and explained that Katniss was supposed to be in love with _Peeta_, not "very fond" of Gale. Effie just laughed and carried on as if nothing happened, so Gale took that as his cue to do the same.

The man doing the interview was a broad shouldered almost normal looking man who introduced himself as Mr. Campton. Although he was short and to the point, he wasn't overwhelming as Effie had been. Gale decided he liked him immediately.

Gale sat down in the designated chairs beside Katherine and Prim. Prim grabbed his hand and he could tell that she was probably as nervous as he was. But Cinna had told them that Gale would go first, then Prim, and a few questions for Katherine. And within ten short minutes, it would be over. So Gale squeezed her hand and winked at her.

Mr. Campton introduced the three people to the camera and wasted no time starting in on Gale.

"So Mr. Hawthorne, how well do you know the Girl on Fire?"

Gale flashed his most brilliant smile, just as Cinna told him to just before he answered. "Well, the Everdeens are my cousins, so I've known Katniss most of my life. But it wasn't until she was about 12 years old that we became inseparable. Katniss is my best friend."

"So it's safe to say that you know her better than anyone?" Campton asked.

Prim squeezed his hand and giggled, "Yes sir," Gale answered.

"So how confident are you in her coming home?"

This was probably the hardest question Gale could've been asked, "I'm sure I'm just as confident as the rest of the families, but I know in my heart that _Katniss_ is coming home. _She_ knows how to use a bow, and she knows how to survive."

And with that, Campton moved on to Prim. "Primrose Everdeen, first of all, how close are you to your sister?"

Prim, seeing how easy it had been for Gale, felt no fear in the questions. "I probably know her the second best out of anybody."

Campton smiled, "So she was worried you would get picked?"

"I know she was, she had been worrying about me for a long time," Prim answered.

"So you weren't worried you'd get picked?"

Prim's smile faded, "No. I knew Kat wouldn't let me go into the arena, so I was scared for her."

"How did you feel when they called out your name?" Campton paused.

Prim's face turned stony, "Scared. Worried mostly, because I knew what Kat was thinking."

Campton turned back to Gale, "What about you, son?"

Gale stiffened next to Prim, "My first thought was to volunteer, but we had promised each other if we were reaped that one of us would stay behind to care for the families, so I knew that I just had to support her."

Campton turned back to Katherine, but Gale wasn't paying attention. He had zoned out, thinking back to when Katniss left. He tried to push the thoughts from his mind and smile, knowing as soon as the interview was over, he could escape to the woods and think about what happened.

…

After the nightly playing of the interviews, and checking in to see Katniss had safely fallen asleep, Gale tried to sneak to the woods so he could think. It was only six o'clock, but he couldn't handle being alone with his thoughts right then. As he approached the meadow, he stopped to hear the buzzing of the fence.

Of course it was on. His luck couldn't be that good for once.

He knew he couldn't go back to the house, so he just sat in the open meadow, listening to the gentle hum of the fence mixed with the faraway sounds of the woods.

His mind wandered, remembering the day of the reaping. He'd finally worked up to suggesting that they run away together, only to have Katniss shoot him down like it was nothing.

But she had looked so beautiful in the square, so beautiful he knew it would break his heart to leave her if he were reaped. He'd never dreamed that she would be there, in the arena of the Capitol, and he would be here in the meadow, in district 12. They had had their annual feast and rant against the Capitol, and standing in the square, they had locked eyes and made fun of Effie as they did every year.

And as Effie Trinket crossed the stage to pick the name, Gale remembered his only thought, _not her, not her, not her_. He couldn't even remember which "her" he was thinking of, but Katniss's face was in his mind.

And when Prim's name was called, his life with Katniss flashed before his eyes.

Meeting her, getting to know her, every reaping day, birthdays, every close call they'd had, even the things that hadn't happened yet had flashed before his eyes. How he imagined professing his love, their first kiss, marrying her, making love for the first time, their first child, growing old together, all of it would be gone.

Because Gale had known something before Katniss really knew herself: Katniss would volunteer for Prim without a moment's hesitation. And he would be powerless to stop her.

And because of that stupid pact, Gale was at home instead of by her side, protecting her.

But when the guards let them in to see her, he knew his time was quick. He had known it wasn't time for a goodbye, and he didn't say one. He simply told her to find a bow, that she would be fine, and he wouldn't let them starve. Essential information that Katniss should've already known, but he had felt compelled to say the words anyway.

But it was those last few moments as the Peacekeeper was pulling him away that he regretted the most. If he had only shouted "I love you!" one second sooner, she would have heard it, but he knew good and well that she didn't.

And that one second had made all the difference, Gale realized. One second sooner and he wouldn't have to watch her fall in love with Peeta, because he was so sure that she would. One second sooner and maybe the angle would be different, maybe she would have realized she loved him too.

But he knew he couldn't dwell on things he couldn't change, and he had been gone long enough, so he headed back to the house.

He passed the houses on the way to the Everdeen house, which was on the way to his own. He didn't know how long he had been gone, so he just planned on stopping in to see how Prim was before going home and attempting to sleep. But as soon as he knew he was visible from the street, the door flung open to reveal Rory with tears in his eyes, "Gale, come quick!"

He ran, his mind in a haze. _No, she couldn't. Not her, not her, not her_, was the only thought his mind could process.

_Not my Catnip._


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter four  
**She was alive.

She would never be the same, but Katniss was alive.

Rue had gotten tangled in a net, set by the careers no doubt, and the boy from one had speared her before Katniss could reach her. Katniss had killed the boy easily and as much as it bothered Gale to watch her do that, it bothered him more to see her sob beside the little girl who was dying.

And as Rue asked Katniss to sing to her, Gale could hear the sniffles of the family around him and was shocked to realize he was crying too at the sound of Katniss's voice. He had only heard her sing a few times before, but this song was the most beautiful thing she had ever heard.

As Rue choked back her last breath, the camera cut off just after Gale heard the beginning of Katniss's screaming. The camera cut back to the commentators, who were obviously rattled. A twelve year old's death was never something that anyone liked to see, but this was different. The announcers were clearly bothered by this, and bothered by Katniss's song because Claudius was crying.

"What does this mean?" Hazelle asked. The question was asked of everyone, but it was directed at Gale.

"She's trying to make them feel bad, she's trying to make them feel accountable for this," Rory answered.

Gale turned to look at him and put an arm around his brother, who was consoling a sobbing Prim. He decided Rory was right—Katniss was putting into action the words that they'd screamed into the valley for all those years.

The Capitol needed to be held responsible for what they were doing to these children, and to stop these Games. One day at a time, Katniss was making them realize that.

And just before the footage cut back to a shot of Katniss, she turned around to face the meadow where Rue had been slain. With her jaw set, she put three fingers to her mouth and stretched them skyward.

Gale had never been more proud of her.

…

Gale found it hard to sleep that night. As Posy slept soundly next to him, he wondered what Katniss was thinking—if she was thinking at all. He knew she didn't deal with loss very well, she was the type of person who would rather ignore feelings than to dwell on them.

But still, he longed to comfort her, as he had many times when she was upset about starvation. He longed to stroke her long hair and whisper to her until she felt safe again. As he looked out his window and studied the stars, he wondered if she was feeling the same way, if she wanted his comfort as much as he wanted to give it to her. He needed to feel as if she did, but he also knew she probably didn't.

And while he was contemplating her feelings on the matter, a star shot across the sky as if to answer him. When he finally fell asleep, it was with a smile.

The next morning at school was possibly the hardest yet for Gale. All anyone wanted to talk about was Rue and Katniss. And instead of realizing that he didn't want to talk about it and leaving him alone, they all decided to talk to him about it.

It was like the first week all over again—except he was hearing Rue's name instead of Peeta's. And instead of a happy tune about their possible victor, the tones were hushed, sad, confused. He briefly considered hiding out at home until the games were over, but District 12 had a very strict absence policy.

The one thing he couldn't take was their pity, and it was all he was getting from everyone. But midway through the day was his gym period, and he had never been more grateful for an opportunity to do something to vent his frustrations.

Ten minutes with the punching bag was enough to make Gale feel okay again. The boys and girls gym classes had been brought together today, and he could see a group of girls in his grade admiring him from the bleachers. Gale scowled—dealing with them just wasn't on his list of things he wanted to do.

So he just put his back to the girls and kept punching the bag until he forgot they were even there.

Until he felt the hand of Victoria Draper across his rear end.

Gale stopped dead in his tracks and turned quickly, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Victoria was without a doubt the most popular girl in District 12, and Gale knew her well. For as beautiful as Victoria was, she was also an evil snake who liked to use boys as long as she could and then dispose of them. She had been the last girl Gale used when he realized Katniss would never love him. Victoria was infatuated with him, and easily infuriated that he hadn't been madly in love with her like all the other boys in school.

"I came to make you a deal," she pouted.

Gale rolled his eyes. It was about the third time this month she had come to make one of her "deals," and Gale wasn't in the mood to deal with it right now. He put up the well-worn boxing gloves and made to leave the gym. But Victoria was too quick, and she grabbed him in close.

"What's wrong with me?"

Gale sighed, "Nothing is wrong with you, Victoria. You'll make another guy happy. I'm just not interested."

He gently pushed her aside and tried once again to move away from her. Just as he had gotten out of her grasp, he heard her say, "It's that little bitch from the Seam, isn't it?"

Gale stopped in his tracks, looking over his shoulder. As if the venomous look he gave her wasn't enough, Victoria kept going. "The one who looks like she's half-starved all the time? She'd actually be kind of pretty if she dressed nicer. But as it is, she looks like a white trash little tramp. Is that why you like her, Gale? Because she's a tramp?"

Gale turned on his heel and got an inch from Victoria's face. "If you were a man, you would lose teeth for what you just said to me. She puts more time into feeding her mother and sister than you do in what damn hairstyle to wear." Gale didn't realize it, but he was shouting, and he had the attention of every person in the gym, including the teachers. But he kept going, "Yes, she's poor, but I am too. And you might have more money than anyone here, but your personality is without a doubt the worst in Panem. Someone like you belongs in the damn Capitol. Don't you _ever_ talk about her again."

And when he was done, not even the gym teacher tried to stop him from leaving.

…

Madge was sitting at lunch when Victoria rushed into the cafeteria squalling. Madge personally hated the girl, but their fathers were friends, so she had to be nice. She tried not to listen to the girl's screaming, but she heard "Hawthorne" and her ears automatically picked up the conversation.

It wasn't like Katniss had asked her to keep an eye on Gale, but she figured she probably ought to anyway. She was the closest thing Katniss had to an actual girlfriend, and she had promised she'd keep them all fed anyway, so Madge kept a close watch on Gale.

"He wants that skinny Seam bitch instead of me!" Victoria screamed, "It isn't fair! She's so skinny! And she's not even going to come back!"

Before Madge realized what was going on, she had crossed the cafeteria to Victoria, now swamped with tears. The cafeteria door opened and Victoria turned her head to see Gale stride in. She smiled, she liked having an audience, and Madge was too scared of her to do anything but agree, so she repeated herself, but with more tears and loud enough for Gale to hear.

"Oh, Madge! He wants that skinny girl and she isn't even going to come back! It's not fair!"

Gale heard the statement and turned to say something else to the vile girl, but Madge had already drawn her hand back, and slapped Victoria across the face, hard enough that Gale heard the loud _pop_.

"Katniss _is_ going to come back, you bitch. Don't ever let me catch you saying anything against her again. Gale can't touch you, but I will." Madge walked over to Gale, took his arm, and they left school together.

Every mouth in the cafeteria hung open at the sight of the merchant girl and the Seam boy taking up for the tribute.

…

Hazelle was surprised to see Gale home before school was over, but not enough to ask what happened. She knew it had to be bad or he wouldn't have left. Gale hated to be rude to his teachers by not showing up.

Less than five minutes after she set out a lunch plate for him, the television turned on with a required viewing to be on at 1 pm. Since they had an hour, Gale and Hazelle went ahead and ate their lunch, changed clothes, and headed to the Everdeen house to get Katherine before heading to the square.

Katniss had been gone ten days, and Gale was comforted to see that the two women with him had thought about nothing else but her. It pleased him to know he wasn't the only one who was terribly worried.

And as the people of district twelve filled the square, he could see that the Everdeen and Hawthorne families were far from being the only worried family in the district. The Mayor looked as if he hadn't slept since the games started, and that comforted Gale for some reason.

But there wasn't much time to wonder about who missed her and when, because the screen came on with Claudius Templesmith sitting at a desk.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of Panem," he said. "I have just been given information from the head gamemaker that a serious decree is about to be released. We will be broadcasting live, and we will show each district their tribute's reaction."

The screen divided into three parts. One focused on Peeta, who—to Gale's surprise—was gravely injured with a cut on his leg. One focused on Katniss, who was washing her clothes in a stream, and the third was on Seneca Crane, head gamemaker.

Crane smiled before he spoke, "Tributes, it has been decided by the board of gamemakers for a rule change this year. We will allow _two_ victors, as long as those victors are from the same district. That is all."

_Two victors?_ Gale thought. The people around him started to celebrate, because only 12 and 2 still had both their tributes, and maybe Katniss could bring Peeta (her star crossed lover) home.

In the first few minutes after the announcement, they showed Katniss's face—how happy she was that she could find Peeta. And Gale was happy to see a smile break across her face, but now that the news had sunk in—that maybe he'd have to deal with Peeta longer than he thought—he had to excuse himself to behind a building so he could throw up.

She was alive, but she was going to try to kill herself making sure Peeta got home okay. Gale hadn't seen her in over a week, but he knew her well enough to know that she would die if she thought she could get Peeta home.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Okay, speeding things up a little here. Just wondering some of your thoughts on where i should go with this, like if i should stay close to Catching Fire or just go completely AU once Katniss gets home? Please review, i love your opinions!**

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**Chapter Five**

It bothered Gale to watch Katniss being so happy to find Peeta, and it bothered him even more to recognize it was all an act. She had fooled the country, and had even fooled Peeta, but she couldn't fool Gale. Even if he and Katniss managed to fall in love together, how could he ever be sure of her actions?

He had come to the point where he couldn't watch the coverage of the games anymore because all anyone could talk about was Peeta Mellark and his damn love for Katniss. But even after watching her talk to him, even watching her kiss him, he wasn't convinced.

Sure, it tore at his heartstrings to see her kiss someone that wasn't him, but she was hesitated, and not in the normal way a girl hesitates. He had seen that look on her face too many times to not know what it meant.

Katniss was torn.

She was torn between the lie she was expected to lead, and the life she envisioned for herself. Gale could see it every time she looked at Peeta. He didn't pretend to hope that he was the reason for her hesitation, but he wished he was anyway.

But as the commentators started to analyze Peeta's injuries, it looked as if he would die soon anyway, so Gale hoped that he'd catch a break and Peeta would go silently. But he didn't hope too hard on that outcome—death was a terrible thing to wish on someone, even for love.

And then they announced the feast.

Gale was sitting in his living room, playing a game with Posy when his keen hunter's senses picked up on "feast" and "all were invited."

His head jerked up at the same time Katniss's did. And his voice mirrored Peeta's, "_No, Katniss._" But Gale knew her too well, he saw the set nature of her jaw, the look in her eyes—she was going.

And so was Gale.

He briefly heard his mother call to him, but it wasn't enough to make him stop. He didn't fail to notice Rory's quiet footfalls behind him. As he got to the turn to go to the Everdeen house, he turned to Rory, "Why are you following me?"

Rory looked down at his feet, embarrassed because of the way his older brother intimidated him. Gale asked him again, "Why are you following me?"

"I just didn't want you to do something stupid in case…in case s-s-something h-happened to—"

"Don't you dare say it," Gale interrupted. He saw the terrified look in his brother's eyes and took a step toward him. He thought he should put his arm around Rory, but then thought the better of it. "Well, come on, the Peacekeepers will arrest us if they see we're not watching TV."

…

Gale checked the television anxiously the next day, Katniss and Peeta had talked about hunting, and he was afraid for them to leave the comfort of their cave while both had such terrible wounds.

What had made Gale the most nervous was the way that the parachutes seemed to come in just as Katniss and Peeta were growing closer. Deep conversation earned them soup, and a kiss earned the medicine that Peeta needed.

Just as her lips had touched his, Gale was certain it was over and that she was in love. But then, the medicine came in on the parachute, and Gale saw her corners of her mouth come up in a smile. It was a small action that no one else would notice—but Gale did.

She was faking.

He wasn't sure to what degree, but Katniss Everdeen was faking her feelings. And the whole damn country believed her.

Gale thought about telling his mother his suspicions, but she wasn't really in tune with Katniss the way that he was. He thought about telling his own brother, but Rory didn't really come in contact with Katniss alone either.

So after the televised session was over, he threw on his coat, called to Rory, and started walking for the Everdeen house. _Prim will know if she's faking_, he thought to himself. He didn't know if it was true, but he figured it would probably be enough to quiet his breaking heart.

But as he walked through the door, he saw that Prim wasn't the least bit surprised in seeing the two Hawthorne boys show up at her door. It wasn't uncommon for Gale to randomly stop in to make sure her mother was feeding her the way she should be. But there was sadness in his face, and Prim knew he had seen the kiss.

As Gale slumped down on the chair, he buried his face in his hands, trying to pull himself together before he asked the most obvious question. When he finally looked up, Prim had tears in her eyes, holding Rory's hands.

It amazed Gale that a twelve year old could deal with all the things Prim had. She was just a child, there shouldn't be any need for her to need comfort, no reason in watching her sister almost die for the entertainment of a nation. Gale's heart wept for this poor little girl, and for all the children like her who were forced to grow up before their time because of the stupid Hunger Games.

"Is she faking it?" he blurted.

Prim tried to smile and failed, gripping Rory's hand even tighter, "I don't know, Gale."

…

Three days. For three days all Gale could think about was Katniss and Peeta in the cave. He knew he should be happy, because even the people in 12 were starting to be convinced that Katniss loved Peeta—the plan was working.

But Gale knew that was the problem: the plan was working a little too well.

He tried to convince himself that she was thinking of him and that it wasn't real, that she was only doing it for the cameras, but it seemed like every time he had managed to do that, someone would show the clip or gossiping about whether Katniss would "do it" with Peeta in the cave.

At lunch, some of the girls in Katniss's ear were taking loud bets as to how far Katniss would go with Peeta while they were in the cave. Gale had to excuse himself to the bathroom so he could throw up.

In his history class, the teacher had just given up to let them watch recaps and updates of the games. Every few minutes the camera would flip back to Katniss and Peeta, blissfully asleep, or an image of Katniss nearly getting her head sliced open by Clove. Gale had to excuse himself to the bathroom again.

His English class was taught by a very strict woman who originally lived in district 7 named Mrs. Kirshman. She had been granted permission to teach in 12 and had gladly accepted, wanting to improve the minds of the students around her. Gale liked her well enough, and he had English with Mrs. Kirshman the period before Katniss did, so he would often wait behind in her classroom and Katniss would get there early. It was a few minutes every day that they had to see each other, mostly to arrange times for hunting, eating, or whatever. Since she had left, he hadn't really kicked the habit. He had stayed behind for the last three days subconsciously, not realizing that he was waiting for her until the late bell rang for his next class.

But today they were discussing a book that Gale hadn't read. In fact, he never really spent any time doing anything in any of his classes—he knew he was destined for the mines, so what was the point? All he knew was it was some love story that pre-dated Panem, and love was something that he wasn't really prepared to talk about, so he zoned out for most of the class.

Until Mrs. Kirshman noticed his blank stare.

"Mr. Hawthorne, not sleeping away the day, are we?"

The rest of the class turned to stare at him, "No ma'am."

She smiled warmly, "Well that's good. You can answer my next question. In _Romeo & Juliet_, the two lovers are prepared to die for each other because neither can live without the other. Is that something you would be willing to do for the girl of your dreams?"

The question made Gale turn redfaced, as most questions about love did. He tried to think about what he would do if Katniss were to die, considering it was a real possibility. "That depends," he answered.

Mrs. Kirshman raised her eyebrows, signaling for him to go on. Gale took a deep breath and continued, "If I didn't have any responsibilities, sure I could probably follow in her footsteps. But if I had my siblings, my mother, a job—no, I couldn't. Because even though I would be very sad, I couldn't let anyone else down."

But she picked up on the most important word: else. "What do you mean, anyone _else_?"

Gale smiled and ran his hand through his hair—an act which provoked a sigh out of some girl in front of him—and said, "Obviously if she's so unhappy she wants to kill herself, then I've failed her. I'm supposed to make her happier, not sad."

And with that, Mrs. Kirshman smiled and excused the class as the bell rang.

"Gale," she called. "Could you hang back for a moment?"

He picked up his books and walked to where she was sitting at her desk, "Yes ma'am?"

"I know why you're so zoned out, and I can't say I blame you. It must be hard on you, watching her with him, knowing how she feels about you."

Gale's gaze intensified, "What do you mean? I don't know how she feels about me?"

The older woman laughed, "Do you just not pay attention or are you blind? She's crazy about you. I see you two every day in my classroom—she's doing all of this to get home to you, Gale."

He smiled as best as he could, "I know, ma'am."

And after he left the classroom, Gale was late to his next class because he had to use the restroom once again to throw up.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Okay, i know i'm fudging a few of the minor details in this chapter, but it was just something i wanted to explore. So stay with me! Next chapter will be Katniss & Peeta winning and coming home! Stay tuned! :)**

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**Chapter Six**  
Every day when his final bell rang, Gale would walk across the street to pick up his brothers. It was a little longer walk, but he liked making sure they weren't getting into trouble after school like he had always been prone to do. Normally he would meet Katniss and the two of them would walk over to get Rory, Vick, and Prim, but since Katniss had been gone, he had just taken to walking Prim home along with his brothers.

The trio always waited for Gale and Katniss under the oak tree and always had big smiling faces whenever they saw their older siblings. And as usual, Vick was sitting under the tree just waving and waiting for his big brother. Gale smiled when he saw Vick and quickly frowned when he realized Rory and Prim weren't with him.

He approached his little brother and put his arm around him, "Where are Prim and Rory?"

Vick shuffled his feet in the dirt, "Principal's office."

Gale groaned and took Vick's hand. Rory was rarely in trouble, and it was even rarer that Prim was in trouble too so whatever had happened couldn't have been good. Gale and Vick walked the hallways until Vick led him to the principal's office. Gale looked through the window and saw Rory and Prim, holding hands, with their heads held high.

He groaned again and led his little brother through the door, introducing himself to the principal, who said nothing in return but motioned for him to sit down.

"Mr. Hawthorne, do you have any idea why Rory and Primrose are in here today?" the plump woman asked.

Gale shook his head, "No ma'am, but I'm sure it's not—"

She cut him off, "No sir, it isn't good. I will _not_ tolerate fighting in my school."

Gale cut a stern look at Rory and Prim, "Fighting? Over what?"

Rory stood up and put his hand on his brother's shoulder, and simply said "Katniss," as if it were enough of an explanation.

"Excuse me?" Gale asked.

Rory hesitantly looked at Prim, who nodded, before answering, "Some of the boys on the playground were saying Prim was going to have to live in some kind of home because her mother was crazy and her sister was going to die."

Gale looked from Rory back to the principal, "And you just let the other kids get away with saying this?"

The principal crossed her arms, "We couldn't prove they said anything. And even if they did, they have a right to their opinion."

Her response pissed Gale off, but he mentally told himself to calm down, there was no need to fight with this woman over his best friend, and asked Rory what happened next.

But Prim spoke up instead, "Rory hit Markson and then Evangeline tried to hit him so I pulled her off of him by her hair and then I hit her too."

The principal lowered her eyebrow at Gale, "We will not tolerate this. But since it is the first time either of them have been in trouble, we will let it slide this time, trusting that it will be dealt with at home."

Gale smiled at the woman, "Oh yes, it'll be dealt with." He turned to his little brother and Prim, "Come on guys, I'll buy you a cookie at the bakery on the way home."

…

When he got home from school, he noticed his mother had turned the TV on, and the announcers were discussing something that didn't quite matter to him. Something about only four tributes left, and Gale knew it was probably something he didn't want to hear, so he headed back to his room to get an early start on his homework.

Homework wasn't something Gale usually paid attention to, but for the last week he had been turning in full assignments and papers—anything to concentrate on when he couldn't sleep at night. It amazed his teachers, but he was at the point that he didn't really care what anyone thought.

But just as he went to open his math homework, his mother called to him. "Gale, they're saying tonight is going to be the finale," she said, trying hard to keep the nervousness out of her voice.

Gale groans, and dread sweeps through him. Katniss, Thresh, Cato, and Peeta. He knows she has to kill two of the three in order to get back home to him.

To him. He wonders if she's even concerned with him now, if she even thinks about him. _Maybe she does love Peeta_, he thinks, making an excuse to go out in the yard and chop wood. Either way, he knows he'll be welcoming her home by the end of this week, whether it's in person or in a pine box. The thought makes him sick to his stomach as he brings down the heavy axe on the wood, but it also gives him comfort to know that it'll all be over soon.

He doesn't really want to think about what he would do without her, so he just keeps hitting the wood harder and harder, reflecting on what all has happened since she's left. The fights, the throwing up, defending her, spending night after night wondering what she's doing…would she still accept him whenever she came home? It wasn't a thought he liked to linger on.

Instead he wondered what he would've done if he had volunteered to go in beside her to protect her. it was a moot point, because neither of them could live with the possibility of leaving their families without a provider, but he still liked to wonder. Would he have confessed his love for her in front of the country? would he have joined with the Career pack to protect her?

He knew the answer to that question was no. If he and Katniss had gone into the games together, they would not have been separated even from the beginning. But as far as confessing his love—could he have done that? It would've changed their friendship forever—that much was certain—and he wasn't sure he could've done that to her unless the threat of sponsors was hanging over their heads.

But the most important question lingered, _would she have fallen for him like she had for Peeta_? It was the most important question to him, because often this week his nightmares had featured _him_ in the cave with Katniss, her kissing _him_, falling asleep in _his_ arms instead of Peeta. But it didn't matter now, it was done, and now all he could do was watch the finale tonight and hope against hope that she made it alive.

So when the sun started to set, he went back into the house to shower and watch the end of the games. The announcers were going ballistic, and as he made his way to the bathroom, he could hear them saying that it was going to be "the best hunger games yet!"

He shrugged out of his sweaty clothes and turned on the hot shower, letting the warm water cascade over his body. He had often stood in this shower and contemplated the matters of the universe—specifically if he had caught the interest of Katniss Everdeen. He knew that it was a fat chance for him to ever land in her arms, but maybe one day, he kept telling himself.

He could easily remember the first time Katniss had ever seen him as naked as he was in the shower now.

They had been hunting in the spring, right as the animals emerged from hibernation, and Gale and Katniss had been determined to get more kills than usual so they could get more money than normal for a good trade at the Hob. Posy's birthday was later in the week, and they wanted to get her something special from the two of them.

But being just after hibernation, and farther from district 12 than normal, the bears were pissed off from being disturbed from their winter slumber. Gale had covered Katniss's back, just like always, when a huge pissed off black bear and stormed them. Gale had basically thrown Katniss from the trail and out of the way of the bear. She had immediately went to work on killing the bear with as many arrows as she had, but the damage had been done to Gale's shoulder and thigh.

Deciding that she couldn't have made it back towing an injured Gale, Katniss had drug him to the lake house, a good mile and a half walk, before stripping him down and accessing his injuries. Gale had been delirious, but he remembered how pink Katniss's face turned whenever she shucked off his pants to see how bad the scratches were. The rest of the night he just remembered as being very, very painful.

As he got out of the shower and dried himself off, he could hear his mother, Rory, Prim and Vick calling him from the living room.

Apparently the finale had started.


End file.
